Tuesday 17th July

Where would we be without the internet? Even though I have a guidebook that covers all of the places I'm visiting on my travels, you really can't beat going into an internet cafe to do some research, read some experiences of fellow travellers, check your email and even keep up with what's going on back home via the Irish Times. Travelling in the 21st century the world definitely feels like a very small place. Last night I was able to call home via Skype for the first time, its been the first time I've been in a decent internet cafe at the same time as Mum has been at home. Not quite as good as a regular phone call, but close enough. If anything I'd say an of the times the call went a bit dodgy it was probably caused by Mum's NTL connection.

Having another lazy day today just killing the few hours before my flight this evening to Siem Reap. For anyone coming here to Phnom Penh I'd recommend you visit the FCC, whether to stay, eat or drink its worth a visit.

My hotel at Siem Reap had organised a free hotel pickup for me. What I didn't know until I arrived was that the mode of transport was a tuk-tuk. So upon arrival in Siem Reap I had my trusty tuk-tuk driver waiting to take me to the hotel. The guy thought it was going to rain, so he pulled down a covering at either side of the tuk-tuk to protect me from the down pour and he pulled out his rain coat for him. The poor driver is a little more exposed to the elements. Each country I've visitied has its own unique style of tuk-tuk. India's are noisy affairs with a two stroke engine, where it seems that a khamakazee attitude is a pre-requisite to driving one. The ones in Bangkok are far more luxurious in comparison, almost looking like all terrain vehicles with a comfortable back seat, but they probably go even faster than the ones in India. The Cambodian tuk-tuks are completely different. They're basically a motor cycle pulling a trailer where the trailer consists of the seating area for the passengers. I wouldn't say the motor cycles are any more than 100cc, so travelling by tuk-tuk is much more relaxed, laid back experience, and a lot less hair raising.

Arrived at my hotel and got a bite to eat, although it doesn't look like the hotel has too many guests at the moment. When I went upstairs to get a bite to eat the place was deserted apart from a few staff. It looked like they were in the process of shutting up shop for the night, even though it was only 7:30. There seems to be a lot of hotels here in Siem Reap to cater for the tourists visiting Angkor Wat, but I'd say in the low season they all have difficulty filling themselves.